3 goals for the Los Angeles Lakers after the All-Star break

The Lakers are relevant once again
The Lakers are relevant once again

The Los Angeles Lakers have cemented their Western Conference dominance through a couple of generational superstars as well as collective on-court chemistry. They are leading the West with an ultra-impressive 43-12 win-loss record at the moment, and are surefire contenders to lift the NBA title this season.

The Lakers are five games ahead of second seed Denver Nuggets, and carry a comfortable 6.5 game cushion over their third seed rivals Los Angeles Clippers. It's safe to say that this squad has found its groove and knows how to win on a consistent basis.

Uncharacteristic contributions from reserves like Alex Caruso, Rajon Rondo and Dwight Howard have really helped this team separate their ceiling from the rest of the pack.

While the indomitable Lakers spirit is gaining serious momentum for the postseason, they still have 25+ regular season games to run through. On that note, let's mark up three goals for this LA unit in this final stretch of the 2019-20 regular season.


#1 Winning 65 regular-season games

The Laker nation is gearing up for its long-awaited return to the playoffs
The Laker nation is gearing up for its long-awaited return to the playoffs

The last time Lakers won 60+ games was back in the 2008-09 regular season, when they ended up beating Orlando Magic 4-1 in the Finals as well. Led by Kobe Bryant, that squad posted a 65-17 regular season record on its way to an NBA championship.

The current Lakers edition is at 43 wins, with 27 matchups left to go. In order to register a humongous total of 65 wins, the purple-and-gold need to go at least 22-5 during this final stretch.

Their task will be made a little simpler by the fact that they have the 10th easiest remaining schedule of all teams in the league. Moreover, there have been no signs of load management on the team's part yet.

Team effort, focus on defense and sharp transition offense have been the keys for LA all year long, and the same should suffice for these last few games. Considering the drive and vigor with which this squad is attacking each and every game, a 65-win season seems a very strong possibility.

#2 All starters to average double-digits in scoring

The Lakers are leading the league in field-goal percentage (48.7%)
The Lakers are leading the league in field-goal percentage (48.7%)

Coach Frank Vogel has been using JaVale McGee, LeBron James, Anthony Davis, Avery Bradley and Danny Green as his default starting lineup this season. Outside of James and Davis, the only other player contributing double-digits in scoring is Kyle Kuzma (12.5 ppg); Kuzma has been coming off the bench.

While Bradley has found his touch from the deep (37.5%) lately, he is still only averaging 8.5 ppg so far. On the other hand, McGee's offensive production has gone down from 12 ppg last year to 7 ppg currently, partly because everybody has taken a cut after AD's inclusion.

Veteran sharp shooter Green is also stuck at 8.4 points, while shooting an underwhelming 42% from the field.

With James and Davis combining for over 50 points on average, the scoring on this Lakers roster is disturbingly skewed. Going forward, the starters need to be more efficient in their approach, in order to build an early cushion - rather than having to wait for the reserves to chip in later down the stretch.

#3 LeBron James to win MVP and Anthony Davis to bag DPOY award

LeBron already has 4 regular season MVP trophies
LeBron already has 4 regular season MVP trophies

In his 17th season, LeBron James is running a title-contending squad and also putting together MVP numbers. The 35-year-old is showing no signs of slowing down.

Currently, Bron is averaging 25.2 points, 7.7 boards and 10.7 assists (league-best) per game, while shooting almost 50% from the field. He is giving prime Giannis Antetokounmpo a meaningful fight for his second straight MVP hardware.

While winning a championship is paramount for The King right now, another regular season MVP award will solidify his all-round legacy even further.

Anthony Davis has been openly expressing his desire to be the best defender in the league, and the 26-year-old has been competing like it ever since the season tipped off. AD is tied with Brook Lopez for the second highest number of blocks per game (2.5) this year so far.

Davis has been swatting shots and defending the paint on a consistent basis, without letting it affect his energy on the offensive end. The Brow is the first player ever to outscore LeBron James as his teammate; he is currently posting magnificent numbers like 26.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.5 steals and 2.5 blocks per game, and shooting over 51% from the field.

Recommended Video
tagline-video-image

Guess the Lakers players!

Quick Links